Le Tonkinois Parquets

Le Tonkinois Classic, Marine No1, Parquet

What’s the difference?

Le Tonkinois Classic is the original Chinese recipe, which has proved to be a first class resilient and reliable varnish for nearly a century. Traditionally used by the French Navy for all their sailing vessels, and widely used by traditional craftsmen for years. It tends to give a thicker coat than Marine No 1.

Le Tonkinois Marine No1 is basically the original recipe which has been further refined by modern techniques.

It is easier to apply. It also returns a slightly higher gloss. Both Classic and No 1 afford a high resistance to all extremes of weather, making them the obvious choice for outside environment. At the same time, low solvent levels and odour makes them ideal for inside application.

Le Tonkinois Parquet is for flooring and employs a strong synthetic Alkyd resin and Ester oil to return a harder-wearing surface for foot traffic. The finish is a little less glossy than the other two, just slightly opaque.

All three can be matted or semi-matted by including Gelomat in the final coat.

Some sites advocate a coat of Le Tonkinois Bio Impression to initially seal the timber, due to its ability to penetrate the wood more effectively, but no-one appears to have proved that this improves the durability in any way. Our own tests have so far proved inconclusive.